Contact-trolley for electric railways



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N. O. BASSETT. GONTAGT TROLLEY FOR ELEGTRIU RAILWAYS.

No. 441,122. Patented Nov. 25, 1890..

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N. G. BASSETT. I CONTACT TROLLEY FOR ELECTRIC RAILWAYS.

N0. 441,122. Pateted N0v.25, 1890.

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N.G.BASSETT. GONTAGT TROLLEY FOR .ELEGTRIG RAILWAYS.

Patented Nbv. 25,1890.

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WIT EEEES- 1 UNITED STATES 1 PATENT OFFICE.

NORMAN C. BASSETT, OF LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO THE THOM- f SON-HOUSTON ELECTRIC COMPANY, OF CONNECTICUT.

CONTACT-TROLLEY FOR ELECTRIC RAILWAYS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 441,122, dated November 25, 1890.

Application filed July 21, 1890. Serial No. 359A00. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, NORMAN C. BASSETT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lynn, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Contact-Trolleys for Electric Railways, of which the following is a specification.

Trolleys as heretofore used have been so constructed that the contact-wheel on the outer end of the bar is held against the under side of the trolley-wire by means of springs, which act on the bar with nearly constant force throughout the whole of its range of movement. Whenever, then, the bar assumes a vertical or nearly vertical position, it can be depressed only by overcoming the tension of the springs, and this requires the expenditure of considerable force. This feature of present constructions has given rise to considerable difficulty, for the trolley-wheel often jumps out from under the conductor, thus allowing the bar to fly upward. If then the car is in motion, the upright trolley-bar will strike the suspension-wires or insulators frequently with such force as to damage one or both of them.

It is my object to overcome these difficulties and to provide a trolley that will possess all the advantageous features for normal operation found in those now in use, and which in addition, upon jumping the conductor and flying up, will automatically drop down again below the line structure, and there remain until reset.

For the scope of my invention reference is made to the claims. Its general nature, however, may be outlined by noting that the spring is so arranged and connected with the trolley that when the latter flies up to its highest position upon jumping the conductor it is automatically freed from the action of the spring. The trolley then falls down below the supporting-wires and is cushioned against the spring before striking the car, where it may be held by a trip or dog. The

-mechanism is reset in its normal position by pulling the trolley down to its lowest position. This last function may, however, be secured in other ways, and in general my invention is intended to cover awide range of mechanical modifications, for Ibelieve this trolley to be the first ever devised capable of operating in the manner described.

My improvements are illustrated companying drawings, wherein- Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional view with the trolley depressed. Fig. 2 is a plan view. Fig. 3 is a sectional view with the trolley raised and on the point of operating the toggle-lever catch. Fig. 4 is a similar view showing the trolley locked in position after jumping the conductor; and Fig. 5 is a side view showing the two positions of the trolley in full and dotted lines, respectively.

The stand A is attached to the top of the in the ac- 55 car in the usual manner, and comprises a vertical pivot-bearing B, upon which is j ournaled the spring-support, consisting of two side plates 0 c, separated a short distance from one another. Between these plates is pivoted on a transverse stud a the trolley-bar D, which swings freely up and down in a vertical plane toward and away from the suspended conductor or trolley-wire G. On the outer end of the bar there is a contact-wheel E, and to it is also fastened the pull-down cord F.

The spring or springs are connected to the lower end of the trolley-bar, which normally press the trolley against the under side of the conductor. In the drawings a bow-spring H is shown attached to the bar by a stud cl, and while this is the construction preferred at present yet the spiral springs in common use may be here employed. The other end of the spring is connected to a movable bearing or abutment I, which is shown as a rotating tumbler similar to a crank-arm journaled to the spring-support by pivot e, and having a stud f at its outer end, to which the spring is attached. When this bearing is in the normal position shown in Fig. 1, it will be observed that the stud f is on the left of the straight line m m, connecting the centers of d and 6. It will therefore be held in place 5 whatever the posit-ion of the trolley-bar and the tension of the spring may be, the arrangement constituting what may be termed a toggle-lever catch, normally keeping the spring under tension sufficient to press the trolley against the conductor. This catch,

however, may be tripped to allow the bar to drop down a certain distance, and in order that it may be controlled by the movement of the trolley itself I provide an intermediate mechanical connection between the bar and movable bearing having a provision for lost movement, the whole being so arranged that this connection moves the bearing only when the trolley-wheel jumps the wire and the bar flies up to an abnormal height. How this is done will be readily seen from an inspection of Figs. 1 and 3. The link J is pivoted to the trolley-bar at g, and has a slot of predetermined length through which passes stud f. As the trolley moves from the horizontal position, Fig. 1, to the normal working position, Fig. 3, the pin f simply travels through the slot; but if the contact-Wheel jumps the wire the continued upward movement of the trolley-bar pushes the spring-bearing to the other side of the line a: 00, thus freeing the catch. The tumbler will then assume the position shown by dotted lines in Fig. 3, and this results in relieving the spring II from tension sufficient to allow the trolley to drop down below the line structure. It is then cushioned against the spring in the intermediate position between the conductor and car, Figs. 4 and 5.

In order to restore the parts to their operative condition, it is simply necessary to reset the toggle catch by bringing back the tumbler I to its original position, and this can be conveniently done by drawing down the trolley by the pull-down cord, which, as will be seen,'causes the outer end of the link J to engage stud f and retract the tumbler I.

When the trolley drops automatically against the cushioning-spring, it will naturallyrebound once or twicebefore finally coming to rest. This is prevented by providing a dog 0, pivoted to the spring-support at 0, which has a cam-shaped bearing-surface, and is weighted so that it tends to fall forward. Upon the tumbler I there is a lug or boss p, which engages the dog and normally holds it free from the trolley-bar. WVhen, however,

the toggle-lever is tripped and the trolley falls, the dog, advancing, engages the lower end of the trolley-bar and holds it against any upward rebound. When the parts are reset, the lug 19 moves the dog back and allows the bar to rise again into contact with the wire.

As mentioned above, I am aware that the mechanical parts making up the structure specifically described can be varied.

What I claim as my broad invention is 1. The combination of a trolley movable to ward and away from an overhead electricsupply conductor with which it is designed to make contact, with a spring normally acting upon the trolley to press it against the conductor, and intermediate connections furnishing means for automatically freeingthe trolley from the action of the spring upon jumping the conductor, for the purpose set forth.

2. The combination of a trolley for electricrailway cars pivoted so as to swing toward and away from an overhead conductor with which it is designed to make contact, with a spring normally pressing the trolley against the conductor, and means for automatically relieving the tension of the spring and thereby allowing the trolley to drop when the latter jumps the conductor.

3. The combination'of a trolley for making contact with the under side of a suspended electric conductor pivoted so as to swing freely up and down in a vertical plane, with a spring having sufticient tension to normally press said trolley up against the conductor, and means operated upon the jumping and rising of the trolley above the conductor for relievingthe tension of the spring to,a degree sufficient to allow the trolley to drop automatically.

t. The combination of the pivoted trolley for electric-railway cars and a spring con nected to the lower end of the trolley-bar and normally pressing the contact-maker into engagement with the under side of the suspended conductor, with a movable bearing for the spring and means for automatically moving the said bearing uponthe jumping of the trolley, so as to relieve the tension of the spring and allow the trolley to drop, as described.

5. The combination of the trolley-bar pivoted upon a horizontal axis with a spring connected at one end to the said bar and at its other end to a movable bearing and a mechanical connection between said bar and bearing so arranged that the upward movement of the trolley on jumping the conductor moves said bearing and relieves the spring from tension, for the purpose described.

6. The combination of the pivoted trolley and the spring for normally pressing the same up into contact with the under side of a suspended conductor, with a bearing for oneend of said spring movable to a limited extent suflicient to allow the trolley to drop to an intermediate position between the conductor and car, whereby the trolley on jumping the conductor may fall down below the support ing-wires, but cushions itself upon the spring before striking the car, as described.

7. The combination of the pivoted trolley for electric-railway cars and a spring for raising the trolley into engagement with the un der side of a suspended conductor, having its ends connected, respectively, to the trolley bar and a movable bearing, with a connect= ing link between the said bar and bearing having provision for lost motion, whereby the tension of the spring is controlled by the move ment of the trolley-bar, for the purpose de= scribed.

8. The combination of the pivoted trolley and the spring for normally pressing the same into contact with the suspended conductor with a bearing for one end of the spring hav ing a limited movement capable of relieving the tension of the spring sufficient to allow the trolley to drop to an intermediate position between the conductor and car and a mechanical connection between the said trolley and bearing, for the purpose described.

9. The combination, with a pivoted trolley and a spring normally acting upon the trolley to press it into engagement with a suspended electric-supply conductor, of a togglelever catch maintaining the connections between the spring and trolley in their normal operative positions, but permitting the freeing of the trolley from the action of the spring, for the purpose set forth.

10. The combination of the pivoted trolley and the spring connected to the trolley and a movable bearing with the toggle-lever catch operated automatically by the trolley upon jumping the conductor, whereby the tension of the spring is relieved and the trolley allowed to drop.

11. The combination, with the pivoted trolley and a spring for raising it into contact with the under side of a suspended conductor, of a toggle-lever catch normally holding the said spring under tension and an intermediate connection between the trolley and catch so arranged that an abnormal movement of the trolley upward releases the catch and by a downward movement of the same the catch is reset, for the purpose described.

12. The combination of the pivoted trolley, the spring, and toggle-lever catch automatically operated to release the spring from tension upon the jumping of the trolley with the pull-down cord and intermediate connection, whereby the catch may be reset by a pull upon the cord, as set forth.

13. The combination of the springsupport journaled to the car upon avertical axis and the trolley horizontally pivoted to the support, with the spring and togglelever catch also carried by the said support, and intermediate connections between the trolley and catch, whereby the same is operated to release the spring from tension upon the jumping of the trolley.

14:. The combination of the pivoted trolley and a spring automatically released from ten sion upon thejumping of the trolley and therebypermitting the trolley to drop down, as described,with a dog automatically engaging the trolley when it is depressed and preventing upward. movement till the spring is reset in its normal condition.

15. The combination of the pivoted trolley, the spring, and toggle-lever catch with the cam-shaped dog engaging the trolley when depressed to prevent upward movement of the same and automatically moved out of engagement therewith when the toggle is reset, substantially as described.

' 16. The combination of the pivoted trolley and spring-support with the bow-spring connected to the trolley and support, respectively, and tending to press the former up into contact with a supended conductor.

17. The combination of the pivoted trolley and a spring connected thereto for lifting it into contact with a suspended conductor,with a rotating bearing for the other end of the spring, having a throw sufficient to allow the trolley to drop down below the line structure and there be cushioned, and means for turning said bearing when the trolley jumps the conductor.

NORMAN O. BASSETT. Witnesses:

ELIHU THOMSON, JOHN W. GIBBONEY. 

